After crash that killed girl, they want to know: 'Are you OK?'

Peter Nguyen is overcome with emotion while visiting the memorial set up for 12-year-old Vivian Nguyen at the corner of Trask Avenue and Olive Street in Westminster. Nguyen, who lives nearby, has children who were friends with Vivian. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

A prayer service for Vivian Uyen Nguyen will be held April 12 from 9 to 11 a.m. at Peek Funeral Home, 7801 Bolsa Ave., Westminster, 714-893-3525. The prayer service will be followed by visitation from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

A funeral service will he held April 13 from 9 to 10:45 a.m. at Peek Funeral Home.

For more information about Community Service Programs, visit cspinc.org, or email crtcrisiscounselor@cspinc.org

WESTMINSTER – It’s late Monday afternoon on a usually quiet suburban street, and four civilians are walking the sidewalks with a Westminster police officer, knocking on doors.

“Are you OK?”

The question is posed by Heather Williams to a woman who lives less than 10 yards from a memorial at Olive Street and Trask Avenue, set out late last week for Vivian Uyen Nguyen.

The 12-year-old Westminster girl was killed four nights earlier, when her family’s car was crushed by an SUV driven by a man trying to get away from police.

Earlier Monday, the suspect in the case, Aleksandar Apostolovic, was formally charged with several felonies, including Vivian’s murder and seriously injuring her mother and older brother.

But as the sun started to go down, and TV news crews set up for live shots, Williams and her team walked the neighborhood, listening to men and women and kids tell how the crash sounded like an exploding bomb, followed by screams of human fear and suffering.

They talked about how Vivian was somebody they’d seen around, or knew well, or simply grieved for because she was a little girl and she is dead.

“We’re not the media,” Williams, 41, explains to the woman at the door near the memorial.

“We’re counselors. And we’re here to help if you need anything.”

• • •

The woman near the memorial opens her door only partway. She tells Williams and her partners how immediately after the crash she had trouble sleeping, but she’s starting to do better.

Williams gives the woman a handout written in Vietnamese, explaining normal stress reactions following traumatic events:

Peter Nguyen is overcome with emotion while visiting the memorial set up for 12-year-old Vivian Nguyen at the corner of Trask Avenue and Olive Street in Westminster. Nguyen, who lives nearby, has children who were friends with Vivian. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Peter Nguyen, left, who is grieving the death of Vivian Nguyen, speaks with Community Service Program crisis counselor Katie Zabinski at the memorial site set up for Vivian in Westminster. Zabinski was part of a four-person team from CSP, a private nonprofit organization that works in collaboration with police departments to offer counseling to people who have experienced trauma. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Crisis counselor Tam Nguyen speaks with a Westminster resident on Olive Street through a window. Nguyen and three other Crisis Response Team members went door-to-door in the neighborhood near where 12-year-old Vivian Nguyen was killed. Their mission was to check on the well-being of the residents as they deal with the trauma. The team will offer counseling and other resources to help them. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Peter Nguyen, left, who is grieving the death of Vivian Nguyen, speaks with crisis counselors Tam Nguyen, center, and Katie Zabinski at the memorial site, at Olive Street and Trask Avenue in Westminster, dedicated to Vivian. Counselor Esmeralda Gomez, right, speaks with another resident. The four-person team of crisis counselors are from the Community Service Program, a private, nonprofit organization that works in collaboration with police departments to offer counseling to people who have seen or experienced trauma. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Crisis counselors Katie Zabinski, left, and Esmeralda Gomez check on the well-being of an Olive Street resident in the aftermath of the death of Vivian Nguyen in Westminster last week. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Westminster police Officer Michael Harvey high-fives a boy who lives on Olive Street. Officer Harvey accompanied a group of four crisis counselors from the Community Service Program, a private, nonprofit organization that works in collaboration with city entities like police departments to offer counseling to people who have seen or experienced trauma. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Crisis counselors Tam Nguyen, left, and Esmeralda Gomez walk down Olive Street in Westminster to offer assistance to residents dealing with the trauma surrounding the death of 12-year-old Vivian Nguyen. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
CSP crisis counselors Heather Williams, left, and Katie Zabinski, right, speak with Olive Street resident Arianna Marquez, 17, about dealing with the tragedy of Vivian Nguyen's death in Westminster last week. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
CSP crisis counselor Esmeralda Gomez reads the dedications at the memorial set up for Vivian Nguyen at the corner of Olive Street and Trask Avenue in Westminster. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Flowers, notes, a doll and a photo of Vivian Nguyen make up part of a large roadside memorial at the corner of Trask Avenue and Olive Street in Westminster for the 12-year-old who was killed last week in a crash during a high-speed police pursuit. LEONARD ORTIZ, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

1 of

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.